MATCH REPORT: Three wickets for Balderson as Worcestershire are bowled out on the opening day at Southport
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George Balderson took three wickets while Tom Hartley claimed his 100th first-class wicket as Lancashire bowled Worcestershire out for 270 on the opening day of this Rothesay County Championship match at Southport, before replying with 28-0 at the close to trail by 242 runs.
It was an uneven batting performance by the visitors after they had been put in to bat on a bright, sunny – if chilly – day at Trafalgar Road with Dan Lategan and Jake Libby making 62 for the first wicket before a collapse saw Worcestershire slump to 107-6 with wickets for Balderson (3-62), James Anderson (2-55) and Tom Bailey (2-45).
A season best 77 by Matthew Waite allied to good support from the lower order saw an afternoon revival as the last four wickets added 163 runs to give the visitors total some respectability.
Keaton Jennings (10 not out) and Balderson (17 not out) negotiated the remaining 11 overs to reach the close safely.
A morning that saw Anderson bowl his 75,000th delivery in top flight cricket generally fell the way of the visitors after they had been put in to bat.
Lategan and Libby had their share of playing and missing at some good balls from the Lancashire seamers, but both also put away any wayward deliveries with aplomb. Their fifty partnership arrived in just the 11th over of the day with their alliance reaching 62 by the time delivery number 75,014 by Anderson was edged by Libby to Jennings at first slip for 21.
Six balls later, Jennings took a second, outstanding, catch low down at first slip off an edge by Gareth Roderick (1) to give Balderson his first wicket and, at 63-2 the morning had suddenly taken on a slightly different complexion.
Lategan and Kashif Ali took their side to 95-2 at lunch, the former having reached a nicely constructed fifty from 98 balls just before the break, but a flurry of wickets early in the afternoon suddenly put Lancashire on top.
Kashif had never looked completely settled at the crease and his dismissal, lbw for 16 playing across a delivery angled in by Balderson, sparked a run of four wickets falling for 6 runs in the space of 27 balls.
Two of those came from consecutive Bailey deliveries, Lategan undoing his hard work from the morning by nicking behind for 53 followed by Brett D'Oliveira doing the same off the next ball. Adam Hose then recklessly slashed Balderson to second slip for 2 where Harry Singh did well to hang on to a catch over his head to leave Worcestershire 107-6.
Tom Taylor decided attack was the best form of defence and his enterprising 42-ball knock included a six onto the railway lines off Balderson before he was lbw for 41 to Paul Coughlin after adding 68 inside 14 overs with Waite.
Hartley trapped Beyers Swanepoel lbw for 21 shortly before tea and had George Drissell stumped for 17 after the break to reach 100 wickets in first-class cricket, both batters having helped Waite reach his fifty, also off 98 balls and matching Lategan’s earlier effort.
Running out of partners, Waite hit out – landing a six off Anderson when Lancashire took the new ball – before falling for 77 to a superb catch by Singh running in from deep midwicket to give Anderson his second wicket.
It meant Lancashire had just about had the better of the first day.
“They got off to a pretty good start,” admitted Tom Hartley.
“From being fifty for none, we thought it could be a long day,” he added. “But hat spell after lunch from George Balderson and Tom Bailey really brought us back into it.
“It just showed the wicket is pretty good once the new ball went. It was pretty flat out there.
“To pull it back, Chris Green did a great job of holding up an end. And to pick up a couple of wickets myself was great really.
“To get that last wicket and survive the night with no wickets down was the perfect day for us.
“After the first hour we found our lengths went a bit fuller, and after lunch we capitalised on the pressure we built.
“We bowled in some great areas and the ball was talking. We were really on top of the game after that.
“I knew I was close to the milestone (of 100 first-class wickets). It’s just a great achievement to be honest and hopefully I can get a few more.”
Ken Grime
Photos: Luke Adams & Dan Adams
